


Eau De Résistance (mini hiatus)

by muyuubyou



Category: ONEUS (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gang World, Alternate Universe - Gangsters, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Gang, HwanJo, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rawoong - Freeform, Resistance, Strong Language, Threats of Violence, Violence, de - Freeform, eau - Freeform, eau de resistance, hwangjo, leader kim youngjo, leader! kim youngjo, oneus - Freeform, ravnwoong, side leeon, side xido
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-07 05:14:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26347693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/muyuubyou/pseuds/muyuubyou
Summary: “They set us up.” Youngjo said, his voice barely above a whisper, realization dawning upon him, obvious in his eyes, the fear creeping back inside him. Gunhak looked at him, not wanting to believe what he just heard - something he wasn’t even sure he did hear.And then Youngjo said it again, confirming his doubts. “We’ve been set up.”// mini hiatus to get the plot right and i'll be back <3 //
Relationships: Kim Youngjo | Ravn/Yeo Hwanwoong
Comments: 9
Kudos: 51





	1. The Water of Resistance

**Author's Note:**

> hi.
> 
> i dont know how updates on this one are going to go,,, but yes. 
> 
> the title was inspired by the song of the same name (aka Stay Frosty Royal Milk Tea) by Fall Out Boy.

“Fuck you,” Hwanwoong spat at the two men carrying him to the base. They only grunted and tightened their already firm grip on him in response, practically holding him mid-air. Hwanwoong didn’t fight; he knew he couldn’t, he didn’t have the right after all. That didn’t mean he had to like it. He absolutely _despised_ it. 

He let the two buffalos carry him all the way inside the building, gritting his teeth, trying not to keep cursing at them. It wouldn’t do him any good anyway; this was where he was going to live from now on. He had to behave one way or another. (Okay, let’s be honest, he wouldn’t be able to behave himself if they let him free). He’d been sold as a prize. This was his fate.

The two men threw him on the floor, freeing him. Hwanwoong fell on his hands, the floor only centimeters from his face, his blonde hair bouncing at the impact. He tried standing up slowly, dressing the men from top to bottom with different names and titles under his breath, putting one leg in the front, then the other. He stood on his only support; his own body, and lifted his head.

Hwanwoong’s eyes met dark brown, cat-like eyes, staring at him expressionlessly. The man standing opposite of him was taller, his face showing no sign of emotion, his eyes locked. Hwanwoong was looking at him, but it felt like he was staring at a closed door, a wall. Staring at something there was no point staring at.

However, Hwanwoong didn’t avert his gaze, he didn’t cower in front of the man. His own characteristics only hardened at the sight of him, because he _knew,_ he fucking _knew_ he was the cause of this. Eyebrows knitted, his mouth pursed in a thin line, he glared at the man, waiting for him to speak first.

“I see you’re not trying to escape. That’s good.”

The blonde scoffed loudly, not believing what he was hearing.

“I also see you at least try to conceal yourself. That’s good too.”

Hwanwoong snarled. “Yeah, well, if I didn’t, your two oxes over there would beat me up.” Lifting his hand, he wiped the blood in the corner of his mouth with his sleeve, just to make a point. He had tasted their fists just a while ago.

“Watch your mouth, newbie.” A deep voice came from somewhere behind him. Hwanwoong didn’t turn his head to check the owner of the voice; he forced himself to stare at the man a few feet away from him. But the owner of the deep voice stood in front of him, covering his vision. He had black hair, blacker than black. As dark as it could go. And his face was strong, his glare powerful. Hwanwoong could only glare back.

“Show him to his room, Gunhak.” The emotionless man said. 

And so, apparently Gunhak, stopped looking at him with that tense stare and instead turned his back on him, his black clothes, his silk black hair. “Follow me.” Gunhak said, in that same deep tone. It wasn’t a question. He was demanding it, and it was obvious if he didn’t follow, there’d be consequences.

His room was nothing more than a plain white bedroom with a worn out desk and three shelves right above, as if he would need them. Gunhak left, closing the door behind him, and Hwanwoong was left alone to stare once again at a closed door, at plain walls. This was what his life had come to be. From one of the most active members of his gang, to a prize for the enemy. He had no idea what would become of him now. 

The bet didn’t specify what the prize was going to be used as. And when his gang put the bet on the table, he never thought he’d be the one to go. He never thought his own team would betray him and sell him off to the foe. When the bet was placed, he had been so sure they would win. Maybe he was paying what his arrogance had made him be.

He lay down on the bed. He’d gone from the highest point of his life, to the lowest a gang member could be. Was he going to be used as a prostitute? He figured that’s why they chose him. Hwanwoong had the body for that after all; he was short and curvy where he needed to be. He was slim and pretty. A job like that, from the view of the enemy, would surely be a good fit for him.

He had to admit, he was scared of that.

He’d seen prostitutes; his own gang used them. But this place he’d been gifted to, to be honest, he never had any idea what it was. No one really knew what _here_ was. No one ever cared enough to know. They moved quietly, they never made much of a fuss, they were almost like the quiet kid in class. 

And so Hwanwoong was surprised when they won and he lost. 

And lost everything he had. Because, even if the gang life was pretty difficult, losing his place where he thought he belonged made his life shit. Made him wonder what his role in life was. What his objective in the world was. 

Not that it fucking mattered. Half of his life, his home was the gang. Not his family, not his friends. School? Professions? Those existed for the lucky ones. No, Hwanwoong’s home was the underworld. And he supposed even underdogs had roles to play. Even he must have had some use, a meaning. Something to achieve. Goals.

But none of it fucking _mattered_ , because he was betrayed by his own family. If he could name it that. Sold to the enemy, for information he didn’t know he could get in the first place. But it was his family, and he should do his best, even if it meant going through it alone.

He looked again around the room. 

It felt unfamiliar, strange, foreign. Not his own. Hwanwoong felt more like a guest. Though he supposed, guests were meant to enjoy their stay. In contrast, his own stay wouldn’t necessarily be enjoyable. Could be quite the opposite actually.

He didn’t want to admit it, he didn’t want to feel like that, but he was afraid, again, of everything. It felt weird. Those few seconds that fear engulfed him, doubt for every next step he was going to take out of that room, made him take a choice that ultimately was very, very dumb. Stupid, even.

He opened the window and checked the height. They were on the second floor. If he climbed the building down, he might be able to escape. 

And how wrong Hwanwoong was. 

He knew. _But this is my only chance._

His feet met cold metal from the window frame, his hands the shutters. And like a thief in the night, he was ready to jump to his freedom, ready to taste the coldness of the air, free of his chains-

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

Hwanwoong’s head snapped to the direction of the door, his neck cracking mercilessly. He winced at the sound, but the glare that his eyes met made his wince melt down. Gunhak was standing at the entrance of the room, not very pleased with what he was seeing. He walked to him with steps heavy and confident, snatching him by the collar of his shirt and pushed him back into his room, as Hwanwoong fell on his ass.

“Don’t _try_ me, kid.” He snarled, deep voice, his eyes warning him.

Okay, who the _fuck_ did this guy think he was to call _him_ a kid?

Hwanwoong grabbed the other’s hand with nails digging into Gunhak’s skin, fiercely throwing his hand somewhere that was not his shirt, punching the guy in the stomach afterwards.

Gunhak didn’t even trip. He only blinked, and that must have been the surprise and not the pain. But his surprise turned to annoyance and his annoyance, to anger. He scoffed, obviously trying to keep his hands to himself and not punch the blonde back. Hwanwoong could see the roller coaster his train of thought was running on. And then, the black haired man only turned, walked away from him, leaving him alone. Alone to wonder what the consequence would be.

He got up on his feet, but it wasn’t long before the two men from before walked in. Hwanwoong sighed, because he knew he’d pay for it, but this was getting boring. They wanted him, and they wouldn’t hurt him enough for him to be ‘taught a lesson’. He just didn’t care at all. This was barely a scratch.

One of them grabbed his arm, the second one punching him hard on the cheek, the power so strong his face snapped to the other side. It burned, and his mouth inside tasted a little like blood; a taste he had gotten extremely used to, something that shouldn’t be normal. But then again, his world was far from normal. This wasn’t the exception for him. Rather, it was the norm, the usual. The tea he drank every morning. 

Then he was thrown down, raised up again, muscly hands grabbing him for the second or third time that day, leading him to wherever. He didn’t care at all for the cheek that was getting redder by the passage of time, nor his bone that hurt like it’d broken. On the contrary, this made it fun. It was nothing more than a flick on the forehead, and the thought made him laugh, laugh out loud, his smile like a maniac’s.

The two men showed no sign of acknowledgement to his laugh. They ignored it, as if they never heard it, as if they never learned what laughter was.

He was dropped again at the hall of the building, on his knees, his smile not faltering once. He looked up, the man in black supporting his weight on the wall, one leg lifted, his foot stuck on the concrete, staring at him. Gunhak was looking at him. Just looking. Nothing else.

The room was all white, but he noticed something he hadn’t on his entry to the building; far behind, on the centre of the room, stood, carved on stone, a rose in flames. And on the wall right after, the same thing, drawn on the tapestry, blood like flames, eating away the rose.

“You’re a fiery one, aren’t you?” 

A soft voice said, one he recognized from a few minutes ago. His eyes wandered to the source of the sound, and rightly did he guess, the brown haired man was once again some feet away. Hwanwoong didn’t reply. He only waited.

“Well, that’s quite fitting,” he continued, expression empty and unchanging, his feet in the same place unmoving. And then, for the first time, the brown haired man in front of him showed emotion. He walked towards Hwanwoong at his own pace, stopping a step before him, a smirk forming on his lips. There was a short moment where he only stared at the shorter. Then, he leaned towards his face, and as if the smirk had a sound, he said: 

“Welcome to the Hwayeom-segye, Yeo Hwanwoong.”


	2. Twisted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took so long, but i wrote a long chapter in return! hope you enjoy this one. I'll be working on a halloween rawoong au for Halloween so you can look forward to that as well. My playlist for this is as follows:  
> [ twisted - missio spotify ](https://open.spotify.com/track/4TQcARE7Fd58akNhr3N7AE?si=z2xA6cXwQTSde17NnPP-vg) , [ twisted - missio youtube ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFtA0ECKh6I)  
> [ gasoline - halsey spotify ](https://open.spotify.com/track/2IO7yf562c1zLzpanal1DT?si=5QwFL0YGRkmJ5T2VwM0Q4Q) , [ gasoline - halsey youtube ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRHNi3QfFlE)  
> [ young god - halsey spotify ](https://open.spotify.com/track/5x2XIAdvFxWCwIOMNkbWUj?si=SnTNiU0ETImHWsJ0CEP5Mg) , [ young god - halsey youtube ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUhJRQSs6UQ)
> 
> if you don't like gang aus/ violence/ strong language i suggest you don't read, as the tags mention too.

Hwanwoong observed the man looking at him, his bangs falling to his eyes, but he never averted his gaze, not once. And then, his arrogance got the better of him. He collected as much saliva as he could, and spat right in front of the man’s face, right next to his shoes. The blonde closed his eyes expecting pain, but it didn’t come. 

Instead, once he opened them up again, he saw the man leaning even more towards him, and then he felt him whispering right next to his ear.

“I know you’re scared, but if you spit on me again, I’ll stitch your mouth together, then rip it apart.”

Hwanwoong had heard threats like this countless times. Most were empty threats to scare the victim, to manipulate it. Most were threats coming out of his own mouth. So it confused him the way that kind of threat made him shudder, made chills run down his spine. Made him even picture the scene in his head. And then the man steadily distanced his face from Hwanwoong’s, his hand caressing the blonde’s cheek, then his chin, his fingertips lingering there. And then he got up, staring down at Hwanwoong and offered him that same hand.

“You can call me Ravn.”

Hwanwoong didn’t take his hand.

Ravn showed no surprise at all.

“Ravn, the other one’s here!” 

The man’s eyes went from Hwanwoong, to somewhere behind him, probably to the person who owned the voice he just heard, his outstretched hand falling to his side.

“Oh, Seoho. Bring him in!” Ravn shouted back at him. Then he turned to Gunhak, ordered him to get Hwanwoong back to his room, and  _ stay there. _

  
  
  


It was the second day Hwanwoong was locked up in his room. He hadn’t been expecting anything less. In fact, it surprised him that there was no other punishment. Then again, he didn’t quite know their ways here. Every Gang is different. This one was… not what he had imagined, exactly.

The door opened, revealing a tall male with dark hair. “Yeo Hwanwoong?” He asked, and the blonde couldn’t help but notice; he had a huge mouth. 

“Yeah?” Hwanwoong only spared him that once glance, then went back to reading a stupid book that had been laying on his nightstand. This dude didn’t look like a gang member at all; he could have easily gone by an office worker, or a receptionist, or even a singer; literally anything else besides a gang member. He didn’t belong here, that much was obvious.

“I’m Lee Keonhee. Boss said he needs us downstairs. I was told to come get you.”

Hwanwoong scoffed. “Why doesn’t he come and get me himself then?”

“Actually, I don’t think he’s even gonna be there.”

  
  
  


He soon found out that it was true; Ravn wasn’t there at all. Only Gunhak and a male with brown hair. The fact that they hadn’t felt threatened enough or perhaps scared that Hwanwoong was capable of escaping to bring Ravn in there was what angered him most. If Ravn had not felt a hint of worry that maybe the blonde would run away, it meant he didn’t pose as a threat. It meant he was just a regular member, he was unimportant. He knew their leader was smart. But he didn’t know he knew how to play with emotions. 

Lee Keonhee stood beside him, casually looking around. Hwanwoong wondered if this man had any idea what a Gang was. He looked like a child amazed by a theme park, or a kid admiring candies, an amused smile playing on his lips. In the meantime, he was staring angrily at the man dressed in black, who didn’t spare him a glance. As if to make it even more obvious he didn’t care, Gunhak spoke right then.

“You’ll have your first mission today.”

Keonhee’s eyes snapped towards the male’s direction, eyes widening of excitement. “Really?! What’s it gonna be?” 

The brown haired boy who had been standing next to Gunhak laughed in amusement. “Are you that excited or something?” 

Keonhee only nodded. “So what’s it gonna be?”

“You’ll find out soon enough. Seoho will be the one accompanying you.” Gunhak said. The man beside him giggled, but what he giggled for was a mystery to Hwanwoong. He only scoffed at them again, but Gunhak showed no signs of recognition to his noise.

“What? You thought we’d let you go alone?” A male, much taller than him, though he couldn’t have been taller than Keonhee, chuckled. And this laugh was almost  _ cute _ for a Gang member, who Hwanwoong supposed was one of the higher-up ones, since they trusted him with Hwanwoong  _ and _ Keonhee; two newbies at once. Though the taller didn’t look very difficult to handle.

“Are you Seoho?!” Keonhee asked, his eyes shining. Hwanwoong could see why; Seoho’s hair was dark as a raven’s and he gave off a very dark vibe, even though his laughter was the exact opposite. He looked almost elegant. Lips pink, eyes like a snake’s and a waistline that made him look like a model. He was wearing a suit and was holding a black leather briefcase, and it was surprising that it had no scratches and no scars. It looked as good as new.

“There are important things in here,” Seoho said, as he saw Hwanwoong observing the bag. “If I were you, I wouldn’t touch it.” He winked, putting it on the desk behind the reception front. 

“So what  _ are _ we doing today?” Keonhee asked once again, his impatience obvious. 

“Follow me to the back, pretty boy. You too, blondie. I’ll explain the plan.” 

  
  


The plan was pretty simple, really. Hwanwoong was currently standing in a narrow alley behind Teheran-ro street. On both sides were houses he wouldn’t quite call well-off. One was a building under construction, but it seemed that the workers had long stopped coming. It wasn’t very usual to happen, but not rare either; in a city like Seoul, you never know what the world will bring to you. 

To Hwanwoong for example; it didn’t bring anything. He had been fighting by himself for a long time. He had been swimming in this vast ocean with no boat or ship to hang on from. No anchor to keep him from floating to nowhere. Indeed, Hwanwoong had what he called a family back there, back to what he called a home. That didn’t mean he wasn’t lost. He wouldn’t admit it often, but calling that his home was even worse. It meant it wasn’t just him; it was more lost people meeting in one place. 

He was alone from birth. He was born alone, he would die alone. Alone at the start, alone at the end. That could only mean that he’d be alone in the middle too. It only meant he’d keep swimming on his own. This fight was his to give, his to lose. He knew this wasn’t a battle he could win. But he wanted to have fun while it lasted. There's no fun without risk, is there?

He  _ couldn’t _ have his portion of fun though if he could control nothing. Seoho had been smart about this. He had gone about this very strategically. The alley where Hwanwoong stood, hidden in the dark corners as much as it was possible, was the finish line of their victim. Hwanwoong didn’t have a chance to escape; Seoho had thought of this too. The whole block was filled with members of the Hwayeom-segye. Not important ones, but bulky enough to beat him up for the money. 

_ They  _ were especially lost. See, their only need in this world was feeding their blood-thirst, confining in goals that had no real value; beating up, perhaps stabbing someone if need be. That sort of violence was nothing in front of the corruption of the world. It was just another ant contributing to a fraud system. Contributing to a world whose humanity was already more or less in decay. Their only advantage was that they weren’t aware of their solitariness. They weren’t conscious enough. And in this world, those types of people were probably the ones that came out victors. 

Hwanwoong scrunched his nose at the smell of trash close to him, because  _ of course _ the bins would be there. He tried to fit into the unfinished building more, as he pushed himself back to the wall, feeling the dampness.  _ Normally _ , this would make him a bit uncomfortable. But he wasn’t  _ normal. _

With his left eye it was possible to spot the lookout for this street. Every street with members with no confirmed loyalty had lookouts. They didn’t do much; they were part of the plan to circle the victim and at the same time kept an eye out for people like Hwanwoong. There was a special price to pay if he misbehaved.

Seoho would be the one to chase their victim, while Keonhee would act as the distraction. He did look the most normal out of all of them. In a sense that he could fit in with the world around him, a great benefit for him. Keonhee was primarily their camouflage, their chameleon. Any type of suit fit him; he could be whatever you wanted. It was almost like a dress up game. He would have done great as an actor.

Keonhee would act as a worker advertising his company. Gunhak had advised them to go with a car company, even specifying the name. Their informant said that Lee H. always went for the fanciest models of cars only from chosen Korean companies. Right now, the most competent company in Korea was - it couldn’t get any more obvious - Hyundai. And this was the one they were going to use.

As Keonhee would lead him to his - supposedly - office, the plan would be set in motion. Hwanwoong only had to look towards the busy street to know when Seoho would have completed his part of the plan; it was possible his was the most difficult, even though Hwanwoong would be doing the most gruesome act. 

Seoho was responsible for trapping Lee H. where Hwanwoong now stood hidden. Hwanwoong could already see their whole plan coming alive; Keonhee made his way to Lee, who just came out of his office, having been notified before that Lee was looking for a brand new car. Keonhee, naturally, had the best car in mind. Lee wasn’t especially guarded that day; they’d been informed it was the guard’s day off, and anyway, Lee had only dropped by his company to pick something up. 

The tall man, charming smile, well kept hair, neat clothes. He was the perfect camouflage for a company worker indeed. He led the way up to the street before Teheran-ro. Hwanwoong’s narrow alley was in a parallel with theirs, two houses ahead. It was good that Keonhee was a talker; he seemed to be going on and on about the car, until his phone started ringing in his pocket. Quickly excusing himself for a minute, “It’s urgent, please excuse me for one second,” flashing his teeth politely, he walked a few meters away, his back towards Lee.

Hwanwoong could picture Seoho’s face as he went up to Lee, seemingly just passing by, and whispered in his ear, “One wrong move and you’re done.” with the most attractive but threatening voice, sending goosebumps all over his spine. And Lee could only gulp, because he was a man with power, but really, he had no physical strength. He was useless without his money. As everyone in this world, anyway. The reason why the system is corrupted.

And Lee would behave, because he was too scared to call out to someone. How can you, when Seoho does his job that well? He held the tiniest of knives between him and Lee, and the older man could do nothing but walk towards the way Seoho directed him, because the knife might be small, but it had quite an effect. Lee had been an easy target today.

Hwanwoong saw Seoho’s dark hair, and immediately took it as his cue to come out of his bolthole. The man casually made his way towards him. Anyone looking on the outside would only be able to see two men, perhaps a father and his very stylish and handsome son walking towards an alley. Though the image didn’t quite fit, they had an advantage; no one cared. No bystander would stop to help someone who doesn’t look in grave pain or dying. Most of them didn’t even stop when they  _ did _ see people on the street dying.

Not the types that would have a heart attack, or the ones in car accidents. Those, in a way, might be luckier than the others who kept decaying slowly and painfully. The homeless, the powerless, the poor, the crazies. The ones this world ignored, the ones society had pushed away. You saw them every day. On the streets begging for food, in pubs drinking their life away, in casinos spending money that wasn’t even theirs, in narrow alleys like the one Hwanwoong was waiting for his turn in, pleasing themselves with substances that were only the easy way out of their problems, and at the same time one of the worst ways out. Out completely.

The corrupted system was to their advantage.

Seoho came closer and only said “To the building” before Hwanwoong pulled the carved out part of the chain-link fence for Seoho to push Lee in. He had been surprised when Seoho showed it to him. The plan might have been made quickly, because they’d only been notified yesterday of Lee’s plans. One of the members had come into the night and made a way through the building still under construction in the middle of the night. That in itself was risky. But it was well thought, if they were good enough to pull it off.

“Now. Hwanwoong, it’s your turn. Prove your worth, or I’ll prove to you mine.” Seoho smirked.

The blonde knew what that meant. Almost like eat or be eaten.

Lee was down on the floor, staring at them, his big forehead sweating out of control. He was scared. Seoho seemed quite proud of that. 

“Lee-sshi.” the dark haired man said, towering over him. “We have a very simple request. You have two options. I’m only gonna give you the first one. I’m sure you wouldn’t choose the second one anyway.” He pushed Hwanwoong towards him. 

“We want you to return all your stolen money.” Hwanwoong spat out, dry.

“I… didn’t steal any money!” Lee tried to defend himself. Seoho only laughed behind the blonde.

“Theoretically, no you didn’t steal it. You tricked it out of people. So return it. One third of the portion is ours, obviously. It’s enough money that we only get one third. Can you do that?”

“I didn’t steal anything!”

Hwanwoong didn’t want to, but he had no choice, because Seoho’s eyes were staring intently at him. He flicked his knife open, held it on his right side. “Your job is indeed very simple. Just do as you’re told.” He made a few steps towards him, and that seemed to do the trick.

“Okay - ! I’ll - I will return the money. But I need my phone to do so.”

Hwanwoong looked at Seoho, expecting orders.

“Just guide me through, Lee-sshi. I’ll do it myself.” He pulled Lee’s phone out of his pocket; he’d stolen it earlier, Hwanwoong guessed, right when he sneaked up to him from the back. “Hwanwoong. Hold him. Make sure he doesn’t scream or anything. Though I think he knows what’s gonna happen if he does.”

Hwanwoong did as told, going around behind Lee, kneeling down and positioning himself in such a way that his right hand holding the knife was just above Lee’s throat. He held his wrists behind his back with his left hand. He could hear the man’s breath quickening. Lee explained everything that Seoho had to do, and truly, the whole transaction was over in less than five minutes. Just about as Seoho exhaled, pleased, an alarm in his phone started ringing. 

_ The warning. _

“Shit,” he said, as he hurried to turn it off. “We have to leave. Hwanwoong, you have to do it.  _ Now.” _

“What?! But he did as told!” The blonde protested in turn.

“He needs to learn who to  _ fear, _ blondie. Stab him, or I’m going to stab  _ you _ when we return.”

Hwanwoong would gulp; but his mouth had run dry. He was in a gang, yes. But it wasn’t as big of a deal as this one, he thought. Their business was lower-scale, dirty but lower-scale. The bet with the Hwayeom-segye was only placed because they’d thought they’d win; they had heard almost nothing of the specific gang back then after all. But Hwanwoong realized now, there was much more to it than they thought then. This wasn’t just a bunch of hooligans. This was almost a whole organization.

“Hwanwoong, we have to _leave._ _Do_ it.”

Keonhee appeared behind them, panting slightly. “If he doesn’t, can I?” The way he said this smiling creeped Hwanwoong out.

“It’s his job. If he doesn’t, he’ll learn how to after I use him as an example. Fucking. Do it.”

If they caught them right now, Hwanwoong would be damned if he wasn’t tortured to death. He gritted his teeth, changing positions. Lee had been listening to all this with dread in his eyes, but Hwanwoong had kept his mouth shut. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, close enough that only Lee could hear. “You won’t die. I think. Just hang in there.” Then he thrust the knife in Lee’s side, and felt the hot liquid covering his hands, as if he’d splashed hot water on them. Lee grunted, then let out a sound like a whimper. The blonde saw the red, and for a second freaked out. But Seoho put him out of his trance, because it was really time to go. 

The dark haired man pulled him up from his jacket, and Hwanwoong, tripping at first, managed to get on his feet. Seoho put a towel on his hands, and they ran towards the car waiting for them at the end of the alley. 

Back in the car, he managed to relax a little. At least they were safe, for now. But the feeling of stabbing someone and the blood spilling out remained. He could still feel it on his hands. The thought that this was only the beginning, made him scared. Perhaps he wasn’t as strong as he’d thought. Perhaps, but this was the start. The new checkpoint. This was where he would begin to get  _ twisted.  _

But who in the world isn’t?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> feedback & comments appreciated a lot!!<33 thanks for reading. find me on twt: [ shinywoong ](https://twitter.com/shiny_woong)


	3. Little Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Here's a lengthy chapter. Hope u enjoy it:)

_“Do whatever it takes for them to trust you, got it? If they don’t trust you there’s no point in this. Do you fucking understand?!”_

He’d thrown the burner phone away as soon as his conversation with the Black Carnation had finished. It wasn’t easy to get it and it wasn’t easy to communicate with his gang under the nose of the Hwayeom-segye. Hwanwoong had basically risked his life for it. Then again, when was he not risking his life at all? Still, what they were asking for was starting to look very difficult to accomplish. 

He might have not killed Lee, but he could feet the guilt creeping inside. The Black Carnation was quite different; he was a trustworthy member, but he wasn’t one to deal with killings, mostly because they didn’t have to kill anyone, unless it was to beat them to death. He had attacked people before, but with no intent to kill. He was used to mostly being the dealer; drug orders and payments was his territory. He was a diplomat, not a killer. 

It seemed that the Hwayeom-segye ran deeper than he’d previously thought. 

It had only been a day since the outing. He partly felt as though his behaviour was not going to be acceptable in future missions like these. He had been taught differently, he was not used to it, but like the Black Carnation said, he would have to do whatever it took to gain their trust, just to break it in the end. He would have to turn into an even worse monster just for information. But this was his fate, whether he wanted it or not.

It was what he was _supposed_ to do. Nevertheless, he refused to do whatever they told him. He was not going to obey blindly to orders. Their tricks were just too dirty. Lee had done what he had been asked for, so Hwanwoong still couldn’t understand why he had to stab him back at that dark alley. He wasn’t going to become such a sinner, not yet. 

He refused.

“Hey, newbie. Get your ass down, it’s time for your official entry in the Hwayeom-segye.” The man in black appeared at the door, expressionless.

Hwanwoong’s head snapped towards Gunhak’s direction at those words. Worry settled in his stomach. “My official entry?” He was 99% sure what that meant. If he was going to be an official member, if he wanted to make them trust him, he would have to undergo that sort of ritual, in a way. For Gangs, this was the way to be recognized by other members. Their tattoos represented where they belonged to. And because this was such an important part of a Gang, Hwanwoong, being too proud of his own team, had wished he would be able to evade it in some way. It felt as if he was betraying them.

_Do you fucking understand?!_

The words ringed in his ears. It was his upper member that had told him to do so, and he had to listen. It felt like betraying, it felt like worshiping something new that he had no desire to, but this was necessary.

“Can I not?”

It was the stupidest thing he could have asked. He slapped himself internally.

“What do you mean can you _not?_ ” The man grunted from the other side of the room.

He gave in. “Nothing.”

As they walked down the corridor, he realized they weren’t going towards the exit but rather the back of the building. 

“Wait, who’s tattooing me?”

“RAVN.”

The mere mention of his name ran goosebumps down his spine. He was the one person he sincerely hated. He knew it was going to hurt him. He knew that for RAVN, it meant submission. 

“Can’t anybody else do it?”

The man in black smirked. “He specified he wanted to be the one to tattoo you.” 

Once again, RAVN was playing a game, and Hwanwoong’s loss was obvious. It was ridiculous how strategic this was, in such a subtle way that it could have gone by unseen. Those players are the best. Had they been playing chess, RAVN controlled not only his pieces, but the chessboard as well. And Hwanwoong was left only with pawns. He struggled to make moves, because the enemy was three times more powerful.

RAVN used his power cunningly. A fox move, Hwanwoong would call it.

A tattoo, as mentioned before, was to be recognized by other members. It signified your group, it was a symbol of unity, a symbol of your home. It also indicated what would pinpoint him as the enemy for a person from a different gang. 

The burning rose was what made them one. What tied them together, like a chain. If there is one fault in the rings, the whole chain fails. 

He touched the black carnation at the back of his neck, feeling a tingling where his skin was painted with the dark colour. He was not betraying his home. This was for their own good. To help them. It was instructions.

Gunhak led them in front of a door made of dark glass. Its frame was painted dark red, just like dried blood looked on an open wound. When the man opened it, it made no sound, it didn’t screech, didn’t squeal. Instead as if on mute, it revealed the other side, where a brown haired male with dark eyes was standing. He had a leather glove on his one hand, the other searching through a box. He turned to look at them.

It was creepy. The fact that the door was silent, but he still felt them standing there when it opened, as if he had a sixth sense, like some kind of predator. In some ways, he was. And he would soon be feasting on Hwanwoong’s flesh. 

“What a pleasant surprise,” he said, a playful smile on his lips, “come inside.”

Hwanwoong didn’t comment on how it most definitely wasn’t a surprise, for he was asked to be there in the first place. He went through the door, but Gunhak stayed behind. He had no reason to escort him, but RAVN’s presence was rather intimidating. He partly wished that Gunhak had followed inside. The way the brown haired man stared at him made him feel unsafe. 

“Sit.” 

Even though his voice was not one to sound stern or bossy, it felt more like an order rather than just the usual thing to do when getting a tattoo. In his mind it was as if RAVN was forcing him to sit. 

But he did as told, sat on the chair and put his arm on the wooden surface on the left side.

“You don’t have to wait, Gunhak.”

The dismissal made Hwanwoong even more nervous, but he refused to let it take him over. He tightened his stomach, but made sure to not let it show on his face. Never show your enemy your weakness. 

RAVN placed the wet paper with the burning rose on the blonde’s forearm, letting the ink settle on his skin. He retracted the paper when the outline was ready, and took his seat next to Hwanwoong, black gloves covering his hands, pen held tightly. Hwanwoong watched him silently as RAVN gripped at his wrist to keep his forearm steady, long fingers wrapped around his skin, and the pen ready to inject him with colour. 

As the man was hovering over his forearm, Hwanwoong noticed another tattoo right below his collarbone. It was only letters, but they didn’t seem to be Korean. RAVN shifted from his position and now it was clearer; they were English letters. When Hwanwoong tried to read them though, they didn’t make any sense. He could pronounce the phrase, but he doubted it was actually English: _Igne natura renovatur integra._

He didn’t ask what it meant, and he didn’t care enough to know. Lost in thought, he had not realized that RAVN had already injected him with the ink and was now drawing carefully on his arm. 

Now that he looked at him closely, the man had some very distinguishable features. His catlike eyes with a very clear shape and their intense look; his lips that were a soft pink and as thick as they should; his nose that matched perfectly with his characteristics; and his bangs that fell over his forehead and close to his eyes as he drew. All in all, he was perfect. And that fact angered Hwanwoong to the very core. 

_“When you go there,” Dongmyeong said, “You should be very careful of their leader. He’s cunning like a fox.”_

_It was the way he said it that made Hwanwoong wonder. Full of spite, and it made his skin itch in curiosity._

_“What do you mean?”_

_“He might not look like it - he does look like a prince after all, and that’s their best cover - but he can play games very easily. He can test you in the subtlest of ways or in ways clear as day. However he tests you, it’s always to his advantage, because he knows how to read you. My point is, do not let him. Don’t let him read you like a book, Hwanwoong, or the game has been lost already.”_

_Hwanwoong nodded, though he didn’t quite understand what Dongmyeong meant. He couldn’t fathom how a person can read another like a book, and couldn’t understand what mind tricks RAVN was capable of doing. He had heard of people - but was that possible for someone their age?_

_“I understand what I have to do. But what is so bad about him tricking me?”_

_Dongmyeong sighed. “You really must have me explain it to you. I’ll make it short, so listen. And pay attention to what he does - what he did.”_

_“Okay.”_

_Dongmyeong sat on the couch, on the soft velvet fabric and put his one leg on top of the other, liquor already in hand. He circled it lightly, just so the alcohol could mix in the glass. Then he turned his eyes to Hwanwoong whilst running a hand through his blonde hair that had started getting dark on the roots._

_“RAVN - he used to be one of us. Along with my brother.”_

_“What’s his real name?”_

_“I don’t know. I never learned. My parents either called him Kim or RAVN - something about protecting his identity for whatever reason. I never knew his real name, but I was too young to care back then.”_

_Hwanwoong nodded, not wanting to interrupt._

_“I don’t know exactly what he told my brother - we were fourteen and we had both been involved in these things from the age of thirteen. RAVN too, a year before he left. Around the month before those two escaped, Dongju had been behaving weirdly. But I didn’t pay him attention, because my brother always acted strange at times. I hadn’t realized then, but RAVN’s game had started from long before that month._

_First, he turned two of our own against each other. He’s smart, because he didn’t tell things to both; he went to one of them, told him stuff, and the man immediately believed him - because RAVN was believable. He started fighting one of our other best men. But what was smart about it is, he let me deal with it. He told me to go find my parents, and I had to run home. And that was to distract everyone as he did his job. And he was - what, 19 years old? I’ll give that to him. But that’s only because he was older than me at that age. If I wasn’t a kid, I’d have known._

_My parents weren’t home._

_He had taken Dongju, and I don’t know what the hell he told him, but it must have been very convincing for him to believe it to the point of helping him kill our parents. That, or he was forced._

_When I returned to our base, there was still chaos, but this time it was because my parents were found dead, my father partly tortured, toyed with. RAVN was kind enough to kill my mother quickly instead._

_The last I saw of my brother was before I entered the base, he looked at me, and he smiled. And walked away. And RAVN must have been somewhere closeby. At first I couldn’t understand what was going on, so I had searched for those two for some days. And then we all realized what happened.” He took a sip of his drink._

_Hwanwoong waited, but Dongmyeong spoke no more._

_“Is that it?”_

_“Hwanwoong. Focus. It may look simple, but it isn’t. There’s a reason people turned against each other when everything was in its place. And yet he had pretended that everything was for our own good, and that he was right to do all this. Focus!” He repeated, when Hwanwoong’s brows knitted in confusion. “To him it had been a game from the start.”_

_If he was to be fair, Hwanwoong thought that was not very unusual. For murders and killings. But he realized the weight of RAVN’s actions when Dongmyeong spoke next._

_“Hwanwoong. Everything was pain.”_

_They fell silent. Hwanwoong closed his eyes. Maybe it was because he was way too tired to process all of this, that’s why he couldn’t understand. But when Dongmyeong said pain - it made sense. He tried to imagine how painful it must have been, to have your only family killed, your last living person you could call home gone, at the age of fourteen. Everything around you falling apart, and everyone you believed in vanished._

_“RAVN was like a big brother to me. He was someone I trusted then. Because of my parents, I couldn’t have friends in school. Dongju and RAVN were the only ones I had - and they left me. They left a kid to deal with their mess. Left me in the dark. I was alone for a long time before you joined, before the others joined. My whole life had been chaos and darkness.”_

_His words carried weight, it was easy to notice and obvious if you listened to him. Every word was heavy and his voice was cracking here and there. But Dongmyeong had also become good at hiding himself, and so Hwanwoong couldn’t understand whether that had been from sorrow or anger._

_The glass was shaking faintly, and Hwanwoong could only imagine his resentment._

_“Sometimes I think he seduced my brother.”_

_Hwanwoong looked up, but the man’s eyes were staring at the glass he was holding with a look of utter hate - like he had made a decision, set his mind. Like he had reached a new checkpoint and there was no going back now. He had entered the house and the door locked behind him._

_“I don’t even know if he’s alive right now - what he did with him. I’m not sure just how low he can get - but from what I witnessed, it’s not impossible. To have seduced him, raped him, I don’t know. I’ve no idea what he did afterwards - I never found him.” He averted his gaze from the glass, and looked at Hwanwoong’s eyes instead. “That’s why,” he spoke, carefully, highlighting every sentence, “now’s our chance. So please, don’t let him win over you. I know he looks perfect, but you too, must have heard. No one is ever perfect. And especially not him.”_

_The other could only nod once and take a glass of alcohol for himself._

_“Look before you leap. You leap once, he’s leapt twice.” Dongmyeong got up, placing the glass on the wooden table. “Tell Giwook I probably won’t be home tonight.” He unhung his coat from the hanger, putting his hands through the sleeves. He looked sleek, chic, elegant even, the long black cloth highlighting his waistline. It was funny, the way he looked so sophisticated and serious. But out of all of them, for a gang leader behind the curtains, he tended to laugh a lot. If they weren’t gangsters, involved in a world as blackened as this, Hwanwoong would perhaps have described him as a bright person._

_He was taking a sip of his drink when Dongmyeong pulled the doorknob down, then stopped on his track. “Hwanwoong,” - the latter hummed in response - “He who laughs last laughs the loudest.”_

_And Hwanwoong was left alone with his thoughts._

Perhaps what Dongmyeong had said that day had been most fitting for his character, for he tended to be beaming, even though the world they lived in was surrounded by darkness. A sudden thrust of pain rushed through him, and he almost punched RAVN in the face, but he kept his calm.

After having heard everything about the way RAVN betrayed Dongmyeong back then - a literal kid - getting a tattoo for another Gang had felt worse than it should have, even though it was Dongmyeong who had instructed him to do so. It felt like he was stabbing him in the back, but he realized that he was paranoid. This was all play pretend, it wasn’t real.

The unsafety he felt when being around the other, he now realized where it sourced from. Dongmyeong had said RAVN had been the only person he had back then. But RAVN ignored everything between them and went for Dongmyeong’s parents. The way the brown haired man had suddenly switched, with no warning, scared Hwanwoong. Because he might be playing pretend, but he didn’t know whether RAVN was doing the same thing - whether at one moment he would be standing and the next one he’d be dying on the floor.

“Hwanwoong,” said the other, interrupting Hwanwoong’s train of thought. 

“Hm?” 

“I heard what happened back in the alley.”

This time he didn’t reply. RAVN’s left hand was carefully placed on his wrist; it was easy for him to feel his pulse through his fingers. Thus, the blonde tried to keep himself collected, take slow breaths in and not show his nervousness.He hide to hide that. And he knew it was disobeying orders, but at least he stabbed the man. He stabbed Lee.

“Let me make this clear,” RAVN continued, shifting in his seat to look him in the eyes. “What the leader of the mission tells you to do - it is a direct order from me. You obey whatever it is. You trust me. That’s what happens here. Is that understood?”

“Yes.” He said in reply, firmly.

“Good. As long as you do as you’re told,” he said, getting up and making his way in front of Hwanwoong. He grabbed Hwanwoong’s wrist with his right hand now, and leaned forwards to his face. “There’s no need to be scared.” He smiled, and he had come so close to Hwanwoong’s face, the blonde could once again feel his breath. Immediately he realized - RAVN had caught on to his nervousness; he had let his heartbeat pace. 

“I’m not scared.”

“Alright,” Eyebrows rising, he stood up, taking off his black glove. “You’re done.”

Hwanwoong looked at his tattoo. It didn’t take up his entire forearm, but it was big enough for it to be clear who he belonged to. He didn’t want to, but he had to admit; RAVN had skills. The drawing of the rose in flames looked pretty realistic. He had used dark colours, but the flames were bright. It had to be clear that the rose was burning; it wasn’t just a spark. The rose, in the midst of it’s bloom, was dying. Just when it had reached its highest point, it was falling in ashes.

Hwanwoong got up.

“I suppose you know not to take that off for a while.” said RAVN, motioning to the zelatine he had wrapped Hwanwoong’s arm with. The cling film glistened at the light.

“Yeah.”

“Okay. Follow me now.”

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

As RAVN opened the door, which once again made no sound, Hwanwoong’s brain raced. His forearm burning, he realized the rose was what tied him together with them now. But what _they_ didn’t realize was that the chain now had a fault. Which meant the chain was already collapsing. RAVN thought he controlled the chessboard and his pawns, but the base of the board was already caving in; soon there would be nothing RAVN would have control over. 

The game they were playing; it had begun. And Hwanwoong was sure, he was almost completely certain he had already won. 

That was his first mistake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope u liked it! comments appreciated <33  
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**Author's Note:**

> comment ur thoughts! <3 feedback appreciated!! [ twt ](https://twitter.com/shinywoong)
> 
> *note: hwayeom = flame  
> segye = kingdom, society and others.


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